Vacuum cleaner

• US 5,216,778 A
• Filed: 03/06/1992
• Issued: 06/08/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Sunagawa, Masao, Iwao, Akira, Suzuki, Naruhiko, Hiruta, Yasuyuki, Ishii, Yoshitaro
• Primary Examiner(s): Hornsby, Harvey C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Spisich, Mark
• Application Number:
  US07/845,839
• Time in Patent Office: 459 Days
• Field of Search: 15/327.1, 15/377, 174/47, 285/7, 439/194, 439/195
• US Class Current: 15/327.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/246 with electrical connectors
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2842 Suction motors or blowers
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2857 User input or output elements for control, e.g. buttons, switches or displays
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2889 Safety or protection devices or systems, e.g. for prevention of motor over-heating or for protection of the user

Abstract

An electric vacuum cleaner having a body, suction generating means and a dust collection space in said body, and a rotatable hose inlet for receiving a suction hose and connecting the hose to the dust collection space. The suction hose has at one end a coupling engageable with said hose inlet. An electrical power supply cord socket is arranged to receive a plug of a power supply cord for a powered accessory of the vacuum cleaner. To avoid twisting of the cord around the hose, the cord socket is located on the hose coupling.

Claims

1. An electric vacuum cleaner having:

a. a body,

b. suction generating means and a dust collection space in said body,

c. a suction hose having at one end a coupling which is detachably engageable with said body without use of any tool,

d. a hose inlet on said body for detachably receiving said coupling of said hose in said hose inlet and connecting said hose to said dust collection space, said hose inlet including means for permitting relative rotation of said hose inlet and said coupling of said hose with respect to said body when said coupling is received in said hose inlet, and

e. an electrical power supply cord socket on said coupling of said hose for receiving a plug of a power supply cord for an electrical powered accessory of said electric vacuum cleaner mounted on said suction hose, whereby said coupling of said hose can be detached from said body while maintaining a condition of said coupling at one end of said suction hose on which an electric powered accessory is mounted.

2. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 wherein said coupling is rotatable by more than 360 relative to said body, when received in said hose inlet.

3. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein said hose inlet and said coupling have respectively socket and plug components of an electric power conveying plug and socket arrangement wherein said plug is inserted in said socket of the plug and socket arrangement when said coupling is detachably received by said hose inlet whereby electrical power is provided to said cord socket on said coupling.

4. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 in combination with an accessory connectable to the end of said hose remote from said coupling and including an electrically driven brush, electrical power for said brush being provided by a power supply cord having a plug receivable in said cord socket on said coupling.

5. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 wherein a suction air flow path through said hose has a bend at said coupling, said cord socket on said coupling being located at an inside of said bend, and an opening of said cord socket is faced in a direction toward said hose.

6. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 wherein said body has a cover pivotably openable to give access to said dust collection space, said hose inlet being mounted on said cover, whereby when said coupling of said hose is detached from said body, said cover partitions off an inside of said dust collection space and said body outside.

7. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein said coupling includes means for quickly connecting and disconnecting the coupling with said body without use of any tool.

8. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 7, wherein said means for quickly connecting and disconnecting is manually operable.

9. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 7, wherein said means for quickly connecting and disconnecting comprises a latch member on said coupling, said latch member being received in a slot in said body for connecting said coupling with said body, and said latch member being manually releasable from said slot for quickly disconnecting said coupling from said body.

10. An electric vacuum cleaner having:

a. a body,

b. suction generating means and a dust collection space in said body,

c. a suction hose having at one end a coupling which is detachably engageable with said body without use of any tool,

d. a hose inlet on said body for detachably receiving said coupling of said hose and connecting said hose to said dust collection space, said hose inlet including means for permitting relative rotation of said hose inlet and said coupling of said hose with respect to said body when said coupling is received in said hose inlet, and

e. an electrical power supply cord socket on said coupling of said hose for receiving a plug of a power supply cord for an electrical powered accessory of said electric vacuum cleaner mounted on said suction hose, whereby said coupling of said hose can be detached from said body while maintaining a condition of said coupling at one end of said suction hose on which an electric powered accessory is mounted, wherein said hose inlet and said coupling have respectively socket and plug components of an electric power conveying plug and socket arrangement when said coupling is detachably received by said hose inlet whereby electrical power is provided to said cord socket on said coupling, and wherein said means for permitting relative rotation of said hose inlet includes a plurality of slip rings rotatable relative to said body and contacts engaging said slip rings and fixed relative to said body, for transmission of electric power to said plug and socket arrangement.

11. An electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 10 wherein said hose inlet and said coupling comprise a seal to isolate said slip rings and said plug and socket arrangement from suction air flow.

12. A suction hose for an electric vacuum cleaner having two ends, a coupling at one of said ends for connection of said hose to a hose inlet mounted on and rotatable with respect to a body of said vacuum cleaner, said coupling of said hose being detachably engageable with said body of said vacuum cleaner without use of any tool and further said coupling comprising means for non-rotatably and releasably connecting said coupling to said rotatable hose inlet of the vacuum cleaner with the coupling inserted into the hose inlet so that said coupling of said hose is rotatable with respect to said body of said vacuum cleaner by way of said rotatable hose inlet, an electrical power supply cord socket located on a lower portion of said coupling of said hose, an opening of said cord socket facing in a direction toward said hose, said opening of said cord socket being adapted to receive a plug on an electrical power supply cord, and means engageable with said hose inlet for supply of electrical power from said vacuum cleaner to said cord socket.